ED to up-scale its activities in Odisha

Enforcement Directorate will up-scale its activities in Odisha after a number of scams, money laundering, cheat funds and land scams emerged as the new crimes in the state.
"We look forward for up-scaling our activities in Bhubaneswar in coming days," Director of Enforcement Ranjan Kotach said while addressing a workshop on Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA)-2002.
Kotach said the rate of prosecution was increasing day by day and there was need of more skilled and experienced manpower for enforcement activities.
The ED in the workshop also gave 'mantra' to officials in Odisha on how to probe into the ponzi scam where crores of rupees have been duped from lakhs of investors.

The Odisha officials were given tips on the ED probe in the Saradha scam in West Bengal, an official said adding the event (workshop) aimed at the effective money trail looted in the chitfund scam in the state.
Addressing the workshop Odisha Director General of Police Prakash Mishra said the type and nature of economic crimes have exceeded the conventional crimes.

"Enhancement of service sector in economy has brought economic offences to focus in recent days. The volume of scams, money laundering, cheat funds and land scams and others have gone to the extent that one agency will not be able to contain it," the Odisha DGP said, adding there has to be seamless coordination among various agencies of enforcement to deal with the situation.

Stating that economic offences play havoc in the life of common men, Odisha Chief Secretary J K Mohapatra said: "With financial globalisation the trail of money in global economic market has become very difficult, and, it needs highly sophisticated technology to track the offenders".
While Odisha Home secretary Vipin Saxena said that PMLA was a response to the vast illegal money transacted during post economic liberalisation, and, "now we have to address the problem from the angles of prevention, prosecution, confiscation of the property of the offender and return of money to the depositors".